To Serve An Angel
by MntT77
Summary: Kunimitsu has failed in her quest to obtain the fated sword 'Yoshimitsu', and has been gravely injured. However, she is given a second chance, with the promise of redemption and restoring justice to the world. But when justice overcomes benevolence, who shall fall?
1. Chapter 1

During the King of Iron Fist Tournament 2, Kunimitsu had strived to steal the hallowed sword 'Yoshimitsu' from its rightful owner, so that her grandfather could forge a copy of the great sword. No one other than Kunimitsu knew her reasons for such a seemingly selfless quest, risking her life for the appeasement of a family member. Whether it was shame, or an undying sense of honour, or even a well-crafted plan from whence she would kill him and keep both swords for herself, no one ever found out.

She had faced Yoshimitsu during the tournament. However, ever since leaving the Manji clan, her skills have become less refined – she had lost the intimate connection she had previously felt with her senses.

On every quest she embarked, she covered her face with a white fox mask. Her grandfather had told her that she had come to depend too much upon her vision, and thus she willingly obscured it whenever she was training or fighting. Consequently, her sense of hearing and touch had become very acute. Yet somehow, these senses, like her fighting techniques, had begun to wither away.

The fight was a long and drawn-out affair, but in the end, Yoshimitsu emerged as the victor. She could feel his foot pressing down on her stomach, and sense his sword pointed at her neck.

"What are you waiting for, you bastard? Kill me!"

Yoshimitsu reached down and tore off her mask – she could now see him clearly. His face was menacing.

"You have dishonoured yourself in such a way that a true ninja would consider the shame thereof to be a fate worse than death. However, it is clear to me that you feel no such shame – you have no regrets whatsoever for your self-indulgent lifestyle."

Kunimitsu rolled her eyes.

"For other delinquents, I would offer a swift and painless death. But you shall now receive such a satisfaction"

Yoshimitsu lifted his sword into the air, and stabbed her directly in the stomach. Kunimitsu gasped, overcome by a horrific pain, which burned and screamed inside of her.

Yoshimitsu lifted his blood-stained sword, the one that Kunimitsu had been so eager to steal, and sheathed it once again.

"To hell with you" He ran away.

Kunimitsu's blood was ebbing outwards, gushing every which way – she had lost consciousness by this point. Soon enough, she would be dead. Yet in that instant, she was lifted – she was not on Earth anymore.

All of a sudden, she found herself standing, alive and uninjured, in an infinitely large plane of utter darkness. But the plane did not stay dark for long – almost instantly, a great flash of white light shone down from above. Blackness remained elsewhere, with the light concentrating itself directly in front of Kunimitsu. Then, all at once, a celestial chorus surrounded her – Kunimitsu was dumbfounded, unable to do anything but stare at this immense accumulation of light. The chorus rose in volume, until eventually it was at practically deafening levels. Eventually, the light exploded outwards, and a summoning circle appeared on the floor. Something was rising from the floor like a phoenix. Kunimitsu turned away – when she looked back a few seconds later, an angel had appeared before her.

Unable to even gasp, Kunimitsu stared at this majestic being that stood in front of her.

Within several millennia, but simultaneously in a matter of seconds, the angel spoke.

"It is not your time"

She said it with the sting of a thousand scorpion's tails. She said it with the tenderness of a mother to her child. She said it with the fiery wrath of a lake of fire. She said it with the cool serenity of a snow-covered cottage. Kunimitsu was almost paralysed by the power of these five words.

"You still have much left to do with your time on Earth"

At last, Kunimitsu found herself able to speak. "What… what do you mean?"

"You do not know it yet, my child, but you are destined to do incredible things. You shall purge this tepid world of all that corrupts it"

"Why would I want to do that?! I don't care about the world – I've failed my grandfather! How can I redeem myself from that?"

The angel's face curved into a serene grin. "My dear, you have so much more to atone for than that. Before I can return you to Earth, you must sacrifice something precious to you"

Kunimitsu was confused.

"You have spent years training yourself to no longer need your eyes", Angel remarked. She stepped towards Kunimitsu. "And now, I am affording you the opportunity to put those skills to the test – permanently"

Suddenly, all of the light concentrated itself into a pure white trail of fire. It leapt up into the air, and Angel rose, becoming one with the fire. In an instant, the fire shot towards Kunimitsu's face and into her eyes.

Kunimitsu fell to the ground, clutching her stomach. Her entire face had been overcome by a sensation unlike anything she had ever felt before. It vaguely resembled intense pain, but it was far more excruciating than that. It crept up towards her cheek, making its way towards her eyeballs. It was the searing heat of an everlasting flame, the cold hardness of an isolated glacier, the throbbing agony of a thousand arrows, all at once, the aching pain of forgotten wounds forged in battle-torn lands.

All of these individual pains overcame her all at once. She found herself screaming, begging for it to stop. Memories of her life flooded her mind all at once. Friendships she had forged, women she had loved, people she had betrayed or otherwise harmed for the gain of no one but herself. The memories only made the pain hurt worse.

Then, at last, there was silence.

The light had disappeared. Now, there was only darkness.

"Now", the angel said from above her. "I shall allow you to see yourself one last time…"

A reflection of Kunimitsu appeared in front of her, and she was aghast at what had happened to her. Her eyes, which had turned to liquid, were lying on the floor at her feet, and horrific burns covered both sides of her face. Her reflection disappeared.

"You are alive again now", the angel said. "But there is still much more work to be done"


	2. Chapter 2

Kunimitsu found herself being led towards a secluded area hidden deep within a lush forest. She had been walking for many hours, following the angelic being's presence, no longer sure of who she was or what she was doing. Suddenly, the angelic being brushed herself against Kunimitsu's chest, commanding her to stop.

"Your life…", the angel said.

"My life…" Kunimitsu echoed.

"…has been nothing but a barren wasteland of selfishness and greed. Your blade…"

"My blade…"

"… has tasted the blood of far too many innocents. Your sword, just like you, must be replenished"

Kunimitsu found herself overwhelmed by an emotion she had rarely felt before – intense and unrelenting shame.

"But fret not, my dear – you are about to become a part of something truly wonderful. Simply do as I say and there is nothing to fear"

Kunimitsu nodded solemnly.

"Now, I shall return your sight, so that you may complete the task at hand more readily"

"Wait!" Kunimitsu was confused. "I thought I was to be blinded permanently"

"Oh no, my child", the angel said calmly. "I merely said that you could only see YOURSELF one last time – you have had your eyesight taken away simply so that it does not become a distraction. When the task at hand is close to completion, there is no reason why you should remain blind"

Kunimitsu understood. "And now, I shall allow you to see once again – raise your mask!"

As Kunimitsu did so, she found herself stood in front of a scientific research base, which was cold and grey in contrast with the greenery surrounding it. It was late at night – many of the stars were hidden by murky clouds, the moon acting as the sole source of illumination.

"Enter", the angel said. "The task must be completed before sunrise"

Kunimitsu walked towards the entrance, only to find two armed security guards guarding the building.

"Hey, get out of here! This area is out of bounds!" one of the security guards shouted. Kunimitsu said nothing.

"I said get out!" The security guard shot at her. Kunimitsu jumped into the air, easily avoiding the bullets, and when she landed she spun her blade through the air swiftly and effortlessly, decapitating him instantly. The other security guard became panicked, and began firing the gun in every direction. None of the bullets hit, and soon Kunimitsu had sped up to him and decapitated him as well.

"Excellent", the angel said. "Now there is no one to stand in your way…"

Kunimitsu entered the building – this particular research base was dedicated to research in the field of cryonics, the preservation of humans through the use of cryogenics.

"I have to say, for such a supposedly important research facility, the security is terrible…"

"That's because I managed to disabled the various locks and security cameras", the angel said. "I have powers far greater than you could possibly imagine"

"But if that's the case, why do you need me to help you in the first place?"

"I can interact with the physical world, but on a personal level, I can only affect those who allow me to. These are people who would never allow me to do such things. That is why I need you."

Soon enough, Kunimitsu had entered the room where the test subjects were being preserved. The angel had deactivated the machinery, and thus the intense cold was no longer active. Two women lay unconscious inside the machines – they were powerless to defend themselves.

"These foolish sisters have let themselves be overcome by hatred and jealousy. They have no consideration for anyone other than themselves – they ruin lives for personal gain. You must prevent that from ever happening again"

Kunimitsu nodded. Placing her mask over her face once again, she breathed in heavily in preparation for the task at hand. She took her dagger in both hands and plunged it deep into the heart of one of the women. She did not stir – she simply continued to lie without moving as crimson seeped out of her chest. A few seconds later, Kunimitsu removed the dagger and stabbed it into the heart of the second woman. Blood soaked the floor as Kunimitsu retrieved her dagger and walked away.

After she had left the building, Kunimitsu was suddenly overcome by happiness – she had purpose for the first time in her life.

That was why she had taken on her grandfather's wish – she had been searching for meaning and contentment in her life, and had never previously found it. But now, now that she knew that she was acting for the benefit of others, rather than for her own, she felt true happiness for the first time.

Her elation was interrupted by a scream from inside the lab.

"My test subjects! They've been killed!" Kunimitsu crept back inside the building and towards the storage area. It was Dr. Boskonovitch – he had been working late on his research, and had fallen asleep at his desk. He had been woken up by Kunimitsu's infiltration. He fell to his knees.

Kunimitsu put her mask down once again – she knew what had to be done. In a matter of seconds, scarlet ebbed out of his head, and he had collapsed to the ground.

"You have done very well", the angel said. "We cannot let anyone stand in our way"

Kunimitsu left the building, never to return there again.

"But as you know, your work has only just begun…"


End file.
